I know there is no shortage of travel song playlists out there, but the bulk of them are comprised of rock music by men. So I’ve come up with a list of a songs by women that can inspire you for every part of traveling, from the first sparks of a trip idea to the ups and downs of a journey. Here they are:
» Beautiful
by India.Arie
Play this song when: You’re planning a trip someone in your life may not approve of and the time has come to tell them about it.
» Let The Wind Carry Me
by Joni Mitchell
Play this song when: You’re coming to terms with your nomadic ways and want to feel like someone to relates to you.
» I’ll Take You There by The Staple Singers
Play this song when: You’re trying to convince someone to come along with you on a trip. Or when you’re just trying to get soulful and shake your groove thang.
» Get Out the Map by Indigo Girls
Play this song when: You’re taking the ultimate road trip. This song oozes with joyful independence.
» Nostalgie Amoureuse by Zap Mama
Play this song when: You’re uneasy about the conditions you see people living in. I can’t say the lyrics of this song completely make sense to me, but it seems to me that she is describing a situation where happens upon squalor and begins to form an opinion on it. Then, someone living in the squalor surprises her by teaching her about his life, and life in general.
» Ain’t Got No/I Got Life by Nina Simone
Play this when: You’re down and out on a trip. This a great song to help you remember what you do have.
» Beautiful People by Melanie
Play this when: You’re experiencing a moment of hippie travel bliss. When everything’s like totally connected, peaceful and hopeful, man.
{ 16 comments }
Ekua,
What a fabulous post! I love it! You’ve chosen some great inspirational music and perfect for the situations you mentioned
Thanks Mary
Love these picks– “Get Out the Map” is one of my favorites.
When I was figuring out what songs to post, I rummaged through CDs I haven’t looked at in awhile and found Shaming of the Sun. It’s been fun rediscovering that album!
This is a rockin’ list! “Get Out the Map” is an old fave and “I’ll take You There” is a classic. I haven’t listened to that Zap Mama tune in awhile but now I’m taking it out!
You know, I forgot to add that I love that you focused on women. I write a music column and I have to conciously remember to include women because men get all the promotion. Great list of women singer/songwriters!
I think there’s a huge group of female musicians who aren’t celebrated enough because people don’t “get” them!
Killer list, lady! Especially love the Nina Simone.
Awesome list Ekua. I ditto Lauren: love the Nina Simone. She’s goddess. Great pics.
Nancy and Lauren – Nina Simone is my all time favorite singer. I would have loved to see her perform live! It’s pretty awesome watching videos of her performances and how she doesn’t seem to ever be concerned with what the audience thinks of her!
I’d like to add to that list, “The Long Way Around” by the Dixie Chicks. I’m not the biggest country music fan, but that song always makes me feel better when people tell me I’m crazy for traveling so much.
Thanks for this suggestion, I’ll have to look into. I’m not into country either, but find that Dixie Chicks tend to be on the tolerable side of country music for me
nice.
Looove it!! I got inspired by song really well. Musical numbers and great songs are my energy source. Great list!!
Nina is the best!!!
This is my first time here so I shall check out what other awesome posts you have here.
Great song list! There are a couple I am not familiar with so Im off to check them out now!
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